


Animal In the Bed

by Jemppu



Series: Honey Mushroom [34]
Category: Star Trek: Discovery
Genre: Art, Culmets - Freeform, Fanart, M/M, Tumblr, honey mushroom
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-25
Updated: 2020-04-25
Packaged: 2021-03-02 02:08:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,469
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23837338
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jemppu/pseuds/Jemppu
Summary: Part of"Honey Mushroom"series of illustrated Culmets momentslisted here on tumblr.Hugh in his thoughts during a nightly call.With illustration:"On Call"
Relationships: Hugh Culber/Paul Stamets
Series: Honey Mushroom [34]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1080993
Kudos: 11





	Animal In the Bed

**Author's Note:**

> The series gets released quite out of order, as inspiration dictates, so I urge you to check out the [series list on tumblr](https://tinyurl.com/honeyshroom) for a better picture of the whole.

## 

## Animal In the Bed 

There’s a high-pitched chirp from the nightstand, which Hugh’s hand is quick to reach out to.  
  
“Stars! Shut it”, he thinks, flipping the Communicator open, and glances by his side before answering. The comforting arm around his waist retreats as Paul turns his side grunting, but the man doesn’t wake up - which is what matters. Last thing Hugh wants in his bed is an overworked man agitated by an abrupt awakening.

“Culber”, Hugh speaks quietly, trying to shake off the drowsiness in his voice. He sits up on the bed and listens for the person on the other end. They too sound agitated, but it doesn’t come across as too urgent an emergency.

“Restricted patient file?” Hugh asks for clarification, “there shouldn’t be any restrictions there”.  
  
The voice on the line starts a rant. Hugh sighs, props a pillow against the wall and leans back - this sounds like it could take a while.  
  
As he sits there listening, Hugh turns his gaze to his side to observe the pale man next to him. It’s been rare to see him this blissfully asleep lately. This is Paul as Hugh likes to think him: relaxed and at peace, like he hasn’t got the whole Fleet’s expectations pressing down on him. With all the recent circumstances, this has just been unfortunately scarce lately. And practically nonexistent when the man is actually awake.  
  
The man turns again, and the pleasantly familiar fluffy arm wraps back around Hugh. Given the doctor’s current position, it’s his thighs the man is hugging now. Paul leans in and his head comes to rest on Hugh’s lap, accompanied by an endearingly pleased exhale, which Hugh can’t help but to smile at.  
  
“If it’s only an access issue, Pollard should have the authority too”, Hugh replies carefully to the inquiries now flooding the line. He is doing his damnest so that he wouldn’t need to move from here tonight.  
  
While preoccupied, he catches himself playing with his man’s beautiful fair hair far more boldly, than he’d dare if Paul was awake. It’s unfortunately touchy subject for the man, but Hugh finds the thinning only an attractive sign of maturity.  
  
He hums agreeingly along the ongoing tirade on the line, and keeps smiling at the man on his lap, relishing the feeling of the arms securely around himself.  
  
This is how Paul has preferred to sleep with him for as long as they’ve known each other - from the time they first shared a bed, when it had still come as something of a surprise from someone seemingly as stern and reserved as Paul. Or so it had felt back then.  
  
Now Hugh of course knows better - is fully aware of what a relentless cuddle monster the outwardly frigid man secretly is.  
  
At first Hugh had thought this persistent hugging habit was Paul just looking for comfort - and while that’s surely part of it too, he has since come to realize there might be more to it: he now likes to think, that this is Paul trying to keep him protected. Whether the man himself is aware of it or not, it certainly makes Hugh feel so.  
  
He recalls back to all the times they had shared hotel rooms in the past and tries to remember when exactly it was, that he realized this about Paul: how the man seems to always be subconsciously choosing the spot in bed nearest to an entrance. It might stem from the man’s instinctive need to stay on top of things, but in the process he keeps placing himself as if in between Hugh and any possible outside ‘danger’.  
  
This no doubt directly connected to the man’s habit of always picking a spot overlooking any space he happens to be occupying: his insistent need to be aware of the potential 'threats’ around him, it seems - he doesn’t like to be surprised from behind, and can’t seem to fully relax, if there are potential unknown risks around.  
  
_“Lurkers”_ , as the man tends to call them, any such people annoyingly loitering around outside his peripheral vision.  
  
Then Hugh remembers it, when this whole idea of Paul’s ‘nesting habit’ might have dawned on him. It had been after their first night on Earth together, during the month before Discovery’s launch. Hugh had woken alone in the bed, to see Paul up and leaning against the doorway of their rented room, peering dreamily out onto the establishment’s tranquil garden, enjoying the light drizzle filling the fresh early morning air, and seemingly taking in the peacefulness of the moment.  
  
Could that even have been the last time Hugh had seen Mushroom this blissful? Seems like ages ago now.  
  
_“Appreciating?”_ , Hugh had asked Paul, to rouse his attention, expecting the man to agree to his own familiar line. The man had turned to him, visibly glad to notice the doctor awake, like he had already been awaiting it impatiently. _“Guarding the nest”_ , Paul had replied instead, with such a content smile, as if he had just come to some form of realization.  
  
And so he must have. Discovery had then been the first instance, where Paul had actually, specifically requested his side of the bed - Hugh recalls. _“This must be it then”_ , the man had remarked nebulously, eyeing the bed during the moving in to their quarters, and proceeded to ask if Hugh minded Paul took the door side of it. Of course Hugh didn’t - what difference would it have made?

Hugh would only notice it later, but Paul himself must have come to see it then, on that rainy morning: how much the man tends to act like an animal protecting it’s burrow, and by extension like one looking over it’s mate. A quality, which Hugh gladly admits he finds most comforting. And immensely appealing. Increasingly so now, that he’s finally fairly certain he’s not just imagining it.  
  
Hugh suddenly snaps back from his thoughts to the realization, that the long winded situation report at the other end of the line has paused.  
  
“Sorry”, he utters gathering his thoughts, unsure if he had remained silent a noticeable while. “If that is all there is to it, I’d say let Pollard do it”, Hugh replies, trying to put together all that he was able to obtain, having admittedly spaced out couple of times, “they have the access same as me. You just need to explain to the patient, why you must transfer them over”.  
  
“Yes…”, the conversation just seems to drag on and Hugh has to keep reminding himself to keep his voice low, “it’s okay to just tell them that. That you don’t have the authority yourself. **Or** if it makes you feel better, tell them this was your superior’s order. These Security kind are sure to sympathize with that”.  
  
“Yes. Thank you”, Hugh is finally hopeful this will be the end of this distraction, “I’ll see to it myself in the morning. You’ll be just fine”.  
  
He closes the communicator and reaches to place it back on the nightstand.  
  
“What was that about?” a sleepy voice asks, muffled against the covers between the couple, and Hugh turns back to look at the man on his lap, sorry he might’ve awoken him, but Paul appears like he’s asleep still. It’s as if he’s talking in his sleep.  
  
“Just hassle with access to some patient files”, Hugh answers, “apparently there are some personnel data we might not have the authority to view”. He rubs the man’s shoulder tenderly, uncertain if Paul is actually awake enough to register any of this.

The level of secrecy aboard this ship comes up in glimpses like these every so often, and it’s unlike anything Hugh has ever encountered before during his tenure in Starfleet service. Paul wouldn’t have a sense of that of course - this is the man’s first experience with working for the Fleet after all.  
  
And it feels it might be quite on par with what the man had gotten used to with his previous 'post’ in the research facilities on Deneva too.  
  
“Hmh. I’m sure it’s just another one of those 'security’ things”, Paul mumbles against Hugh, his breath warm through the covers, dismissing the issue like it is indeed something to be expected.  
  
Maybe he’s just been in the ranks too long, and is getting old fashioned - Hugh thinks of himself -, stuck in the previously established practices while the procedures within the organization move on with times.  
  
He decides to forget about it for now, turns his gaze down and lets out a sigh, teetering on the border between dejected and amused: right now he needs to figure out how to lay back down without awakening this affectionate 'animal’ tightly wrapped around his waist. His mellow Honey Mushroom could easily turn to a beastly creature, if disturbed.

**Author's Note:**

> Thoughts on the work posted along with the illustration on [**tumblr**](https://jmalkki.tumblr.com/post/180114962844/on-call-apologies-its-been-a-while-i-havent).
> 
> _Likes, shares, comments and what have you, all appreciated on:_  
>  _[ **tumblr**](http://jmalkki.tumblr.com/) | [**twitter**](https://twitter.com/Jemppu) | [**instagram**](https://www.instagram.com/jeminamalkki/) | [**DeviantArt**](https://www.deviantart.com/jemppu)_


End file.
